


Sibling Encounter

by Cal14



Series: Mother Of Learning - Short Stories [3]
Category: Mother of Learning - nobody103
Genre: Gen, Kazinski siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-27
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 00:49:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21958573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cal14/pseuds/Cal14
Summary: Daimen manages to convince his siblings to sit down and talk to each other like civilized people.In which Zorian wants to leave, Kirielle likes to talk, Fortov is very confused, and Daimen has no idea what he started. In the meantime, Imaya and Kael enjoy watching the chaos.
Relationships: Zach Noveda/Zorian Kazinski (mentioned), Zorian Kazinski & Kirielle Kazinski, Zorian Kazinski & Kirielle Kazinski & Daimen Kazinski & Fortov Kazinski
Series: Mother Of Learning - Short Stories [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1579648
Comments: 7
Kudos: 52





	1. Chapter 1

“Come on, Zorian, I’m not asking that much. I just want us to sit down and talk, and see what happens, you know? The time loop is the perfect chance for this! There won’t be repercussions if things end badly,” Daimen told him. He’d been insisting that Zorian, Fortov and Kirielle met up with him for a ‘talk’ for days now. He seemed to think everyone would be more willing to talk if he grouped them together instead of talking to them individually, like he usually did. 

“It’ll just end in disaster and you know it. Fortov hates when you force him to talk, and he’ll be even more embarrassed if you do that in front of Kirielle.”

“Well, yeah, maybe, but Kirielle might be more willing to talk if you’re there. And don’t think you’re off the hook, too. You need to sort out that thing you’ve got with Fortov. It’s not remotely okay that you haven’t cared enough to even check up even once on whether your brother is alive or not at the end of the month for years, Zorian.” Zorian knew it wouldn’t be long until Daimen started lecturing him again about being a bad brother, but this was probably a record. 

“Alright, alright. I’ll do it. I don’t really care, anyway.” Zorian agreed, placing his hands up in a placating manner, “It’s your job to convince the others, though. I’m definitely not taking care of that.” 

“Can’t you at least bring Kirielle along? She barely even answers me when I talk to her!” Daimen pouted.

“Nope. That’s your problem, not mine. Tell me the date and time when you’ve talked them into it and I’ll be there, I guess,” Zorian sighed. He’d become less stubborn ever since the time loop, and he wasn’t sure if it was a completely positive change. For starters, it was apparently easier for people to talk him into ridiculous things like this one. Either that or he was just too tired at this point to care. He was sure a few years back he would have given Daimen hell for anything he did, but at this point he mostly only felt indifference and a bit of pity for his oldest brother. 

Daimen groaned, “I guess that’s better than nothing, at least.” He got up from where he’d been sitting on the floor in Zorian’s makeshift craft shop and walked to the door. “Good luck on your golem, by the way. It’s smaller than the ones you usually make, does it have a different purpose than just battling?” 

“It’s for Kirielle,” Zorian explained. “Just a toy for her to play with, and it can protect her if necessary.” 

“I see,” Daimen said, looking at him weirdly. “Well, see ya.” He smiled as he left.

Yeah, that was definitely weird. With some luck, Daimen wouldn't be able to convince the others before the time loop ended. Zorian didn't have that kind of luck, though.


	2. Chapter 2

Zorian cursed himself for ever agreeing to this as he helped Imaya cook dinner and set the table. Of course they had to come here. Going to the Taramatula Estate would imply using a gate which would be a pain to explain to Fortov, and a public location would be troublesome if the talk developed into a fight, which it had a good chance of doing. Why hadn’t he predicted this? 

Kirielle was sitting at the table, silently playing with Kosjenka. She had been rather quiet ever since Daimen had talked to her, and Zorian wasn’t sure if she 100% agreed with the idea or if she was just too scared of Daimen to refuse him. He was more inclined towards the second option, though. 

Just as he finished setting the table and was about to go back into the kitchen to help Imaya with dinner, Kirielle talked to him.

“Zorian? Are you mad we have to talk with Daimen and Fortov?” 

Zorian looked at her, doing his best to look calm. “I’m not mad. Sure, I don’t exactly like it, but I’m not angry about it,” he explained. He didn’t want Kirielle to think she had to hate her brothers just because Zorian did, so he was trying to act as neutral as possible around her. It didn’t help that she already knew he disliked them from his actions before the time loop, but at least he could try not make it worse. “What about you? How do you feel about it?”

“It’s weird. Daimen never wanted to talk to us before, and he was supposed to be far away, but then he appeared out of nowhere and now he wants to talk to us. And Fortov is mean. Can’t I go to my room instead?” She looked at him with puppy eyes. Unfortunately for her, Zorian had enough experience not to fall for them that easily.

“Hey, now, you told Daimen you would sit down with everyone to talk things out. It’d be cowardly to back out now.” She looked downright miserable as he told her this, and Zorian ended up caving in after a few minutes, sighing. “But I guess I can cover for you if it gets too bad. You still have to be there at the start, but if you eat all your dinner and the situation gets out of hand, you can leave.” 

“You’re a real softie for your sister, you know?” Imaya told him as she placed the pasta she’d been cooking on the table, looking at him coyly. “Remember to tell your brothers that it’s rude to be late for a family meeting, especially to the one that supposedly organized this. Honestly, the nerve to arrange a gathering in my home while only telling me last minute about it,” she scoffed. 

“I’m not soft,” Zorian complained uselessly. “But I’ll make sure they know of their lack of manners.” 

“Well, I’m not sure your boyfriend would agree with that. He certainly seems to think you’re soft enough to be constantly cuddling you,” she teased him. 

“Zach’s not my boyfriend,” he strained, although the look of mild embarrassment on his face suggested otherwise. Even Kirielle snorted at that. The little traitor. “Don’t you even dare give Fortov or Daimen any ideas about that.” 

As if summoned, someone knocked on the front door. Imaya went to open it, as it was her house, and in came both Daimen and Fortov. 

“You were supposed to be here like half an hour ago,” Zorian greeted them.

“Sorry, I went to pick Fortov up before coming here, and we, uh, got delayed,” Daimen said, looking sheepish. Fortov stayed silent, but Zorian got strong feelings of resentment and general grumpiness. They must’ve had an argument, he guessed. Not really surprising, all things considered. 

Imaya left them as they all sat down on the table, with the exception of Kirielle who was already sitting down, and they helped themselves to dinner. Imaya took a few plates of pasta as she left, and went to Kael’s room to give them to him and Kana. They had considered having dinner with all of the house’s inhabitants, but had ultimately decided it was not a smart decision, and that it would be unfair to Imaya, Kael and his daughter to rope them into Zorian and Kirielle’s family drama. 

The four siblings ate in silence. Zorian was quite amused that after insisting on this for days, Daimen hadn’t started discussing anything yet. Was he starting to regret this? 

“Did you really bring me all the way here just to not say anything?” Fortov snapped. He slammed his cutlery on the table, visibly angry. 

“Of course not! I was just… waiting for you to be in a better mood?” Daimen tried.

“Why don’t we all calm down and talk about things like civilized people,” Zorian said, sighing. “Besides, Kiri should go to sleep soon, so let’s not make this last too long.”

Kirielle burrowed into Zorian, yawning, as if to strengthen the point. Zorian wouldn’t exactly say that her acting was perfect, but she tried anyway. She didn’t move away from Zorian, though, leaning sideways on him. Maybe she found it comforting. Zorian was half-tempted to push her onto her own chair, but his empathy let him feel just how uncomfortable Kirielle was at the moment, and he didn’t have the heart to deny her. 

“Alright. Then,” Daimen awkwardly said. “What did you guys do today?” 

Fortov groaned and Zorian mentally face-palmed. Kirielle didn’t seem to mind, though. 

“I played hide and seek with Nochka and Kana today. It’s very hard because Nochka can get into really tiny places and Kana is so quiet that if you don’t see her you’ll never find her,” Kirielle explained, suddenly no longer tired. “We went to the park and Imaya taught us how to make lemonade. Then Nochka’s parents came to get her, so we couldn’t keep playing, but Zorian came back so that was fine. Zorian’s teaching me magic! He says I’ll get a lot better if I practice.”

“That’s not a compliment,” Daimen muttered, frowning. 

“You’re teaching her magic?” Fortov frowned. “Why?” 

“Just because.” Zorian got the feeling Kirielle didn’t want to talk about how mother refused to let her go to the academy because of her personal beliefs, so he avoided the subject to the best of his ability. 

“He made her a golem the other day, too. It looks like someone has favorites,” Daimen joked.

“What? Since when do you even know how to make golems?” Fortov was going to be a pain in the ass and Zorian just knew it. 

“It’s not anything complicated. Just a small side project I did because I was bored. We’re still reviewing last year’s contents in class so I have plenty of free time.” Fortov gave him a suspicious look, but didn’t say anything otherwise. He also seemed somewhat resentful towards him.

“Well, how about we do something together to pass the time? Like, uh, a game or something?” Daimen proposed as he looked around the room. Zorian didn’t think there was anything interesting, apart from maybe Imaya’s stack of cheap romance novels.

“Zorian has cards! I’ll go get them,” Kirielle said, jumping out of her chair and hurrying to Zorian’s room. 

“Hey! Don’t go into my room without asking for permission,” Zorian told her, glaring at her back until she went around the corner and he couldn’t see her anymore. 

“Can I?” she yelled from across the house.

“It’s pointless to ask now. But fine, I guess,” Zorian sighed. 

She came back soon after, bringing Zorian’s stack of cards with her. He made a point of buying at least one set every restart, since everyone in the house, including its visitors, enjoyed playing.

Zorian took the plates they’d used to the kitchen and washed them, already imagining how mad Imaya would be if he just left them there for her to wash the next day. By the time he came back, his siblings had already distributed the cards and Daimen was trying to make small talk with Kirielle, and failing miserably. She answered him in awkward and short sentences, and seemed grateful when Zorian sat back beside her. It seemed she didn’t feel comfortable talking to their brothers unless Zorian was present. 

Since Kirielle didn’t want to play on her own, saying it was unfair as she didn’t know the rules of the game, Zorian ended teaming up with her, much to his demise. Daimen suggested teaming up with Fortov to balance the game but their brother declined immediately. 

Daimen was evidently trying not to win too much, probably thinking that if Fortov was winning he’d be in a better mood. Kirielle and Zorian were in last place, as it always happened whenever they played together. Zorian didn’t mind it so much, now. He would have, once, but over time he’d learned to simply accept his luck sometimes. 

Kirielle was staring at the cards on the table, most likely turning something over in her mind, very concentrated. “Zorian,” she called, “Are we losing?” 

“Yeah. We are,” Zorian replied, amused. 

“Why?” 

“Because you’re terrible at this,” he told her honestly, doing his best not to laugh at her reaction.

“That’s not true!” she told him, indignantly.

“Yeah, it is.”

“No, it’s not,” she insisted, “We always win when we play against your boyfriend.” 

Oh, hell. There went Zorian’s hopes that he could just have fun watching his brothers be miserable for the evening. Now _he_ was going to be the miserable one. Why would Kiri betray him like this? He thought he made a pretty decent brother, at least compared to the others. 

“Your what?” Fortov and Daimen asked at the same time. Daimen looked amused, probably knowing who Kirielle was referring to and fully prepared to make fun of Zorian. Fortov, on the other hand, was just incredibly confused. He’d been like that for some time. Maybe ever since he arrived to the house. 

“He’s- He’s not my boyfriend. Kirielle is just repeating something Imaya said. Don’t listen to her,” Zorian basically pleaded. His face was probably reddish. 

Zach was, actually, kind of his boyfriend. It was just a bit unclear yet. 

Things had started a few weeks prior, when Zach got drunk at a tavern and Zorian was trying to walk him home. Zach kept staring at him for blocks, and when he told the other boy to quit it, Zach said something about Zorian being ‘just too pretty’ and kissed him. 

And then he said some very mean things about Zorian's mother when he realized why he tasted like sugar and not beer. 

Zorian might have thought it had been a one-time thing if Zach hadn’t kissed him again the next day. And the next one after that, too. He never really stopped, actually. 

So, yes. They kissed now. And cuddled, sometimes. And held hands twice. But Zorian still wasn’t completely sure if that meant they were dating, and just generally didn’t want to talk about it with his siblings.

“But-” Kirielle started, frowning.

“No. Don’t say anything more,” Zorian interrupted her, trying to glare at her. 

“Is she talking about that Benisek guy you hang around?” Fortov asked, looking at him weirdly. 

“I think she’s actually referring to Zach. Can’t say I’m surprised, those two are always together,” Daimen explained. “You make a cute couple,” he added, laughing at Zorian. 

“Shut up,” Zorian told him. “He’s just a friend.” 

Kirielle looked confused. “But didn’t you-”

“No,” Zorian repeated. “No, I didn’t anything.” He looked her in the eye, silently pleading her to understand for once in her life, not to say what she had on her mind.

“You guys kissed, I saw you!” What was the furthest place he could go to? Fastest way to teleport out of the house?

Daimen spit his drink, laughing, while Fortov just stared at the situation in front of him, dumbfounded. 

“Zach Noveda?” was all he said. 

“Kirielle, I am going to kill you,” he told her as he stared at the ceiling. This was definitely the worst outcome possible. And his threat didn’t even sound mean what with the fact that Kirielle was still glued to his side, half hugging him.

“Oh, c’mon, Zorian! Don’t be so dramatic, we aren’t gonna judge you just because you’re dating a guy. I’d already figured it out, anyway,” Daimen said, annoyingly smug. 

“What do you mean you ‘figured it out’? The hell does that even mean?”

“You look at each other all the time! And seriously, going to another continent with this guy who’s ‘just a friend’? Yeah, right. It was obvious from the first moment I saw the two of you.”

“No, it wasn’t.” 

“Oh, so you’re admitting you two _are_ dating, then.” 

“I never said that!” Zorian exclaimed, “He just- He’s just- It’s none of your business, alright?” 

“The Zach Noveda from the Noble house?” It seemed Fortov was having trouble keeping up with the conversation. 

“Yes, that Zach,” Zorian told him, exasperated. “He’s just my friend.” 

“‘He’s just my friend’,“ Daimen mocked him, making a funny face. Zorian threw a book at him. He was pretty sure it was a bad romance novel about werewolves. He hoped it hurt. 

“You kissed him?” Fortov said, ignoring Daimen’s cries of outrage. He sounded incredulous. 

“Can we talk about literally anything else?” Zorian asked, burying his face in his hands, with a sigh. Kirielle patted his back. 

“I think he’s nice,” she told him, reassuringly. “I wouldn’t mind if you married him.” 

“Ma- Who said anything about- That’s not- I’m not- I’m not going to marry Zach!” Zorian sputtered.

“You’re not?” Kael asked, tilting his head as he leaned on the door that lead to his room with his arms crossed. Zorian hadn’t even noticed him come out. The morlock seemed rather amused at his current predicament. 

“Not you too, Kael,” Zorian groaned. How many days were left until this restart ended? Maybe he could flip the switch on his marker now… “Go back to your room.” He flapped about one of his hands towards him, halfheartedly.

“I just came to tell you to keep down the noise, Kana’s trying to sleep.” He turned to Zorian’s brothers, “But for the record, he’s totally dating Zach.” 

“Kael!” Zorian half-shouted. He was still aware of what the other boy had told him, and wasn’t indelicate enough to actually be shouting if the little girl wanted to rest. 

“Alright, alright. Goodnight, everyone. Don’t make a ruckus,” Kael told them as he slipped inside his room again, closing his door. 

“Who was that?” Daimen asked, turning around to face Zorian. 

“A classmate. He lives here too,” Zorian vaguely explained. He was internally glad for the change of subject. With a bit of luck, the topic of Zach wouldn’t come up again. 

“He’s nice,” Kirielle added. “He collects flowers.” Zorian snorted. 

“He doesn’t just ‘collect flowers’, he’s crazy good at alchemy. Probably the best I’ve ever seen.” 

“Oh, really?” Daimen asked, interested.

“Yeah! He has a workshop and he’s always doing things and researching. He has lots of flowers and stuff, too. Sometimes he asks me and Kana to accompany him to search for flowers in the woods, he’s really nice!” 

“Are you actually any help?” Zorian teasingly asked as he looked down at her, smirking a bit. 

“Yeah!” She puffed. “Kael says without me it’d take him twice the time! He even thanks us and sometimes he takes us to a cafe downtown that has really good bagels.” 

“How good?” Zorian asked, suddenly serious.

“9 out of 10,” Kirielle answered him, equally serious. 

“Why not 10?”

“The bread has poppy seeds. I don’t like them. But they’re easy to take out.” 

“Oh.” 

“So, uh, are we gonna keep playing?” Daimen asked, pointedly looking at the cards on the table. Zorian guessed he and Kirielle had been excluding them a little, but he didn’t feel exactly sorry. 

“Maybe we should wrap up. It’s kind of late, and Kirielle should go to sleep.”

“I’m not tired though!” she protested. Then, she added, “Do we have anything for dessert? I’m kinda hungry.” 

“I’m not gonna give you sugar.” Zorian glared at her. He’d already learned his lesson.

“Why not?” Damien asked.

Zorian stared at him. Wasn’t he supposed to be the oldest? 

“Have you ever seen a child on a sugar rush?”

He frowned. “What’s a sugar rush?”

“It’s when a kid eats too much sugar. Obviously,” Fortov begrudgingly answered him, saving Zorian the trouble. He seemed snappy. 

“Zoriaaan,” Kirielle whined, dragging out his name and tugging his arm to get his attention. “I’m still hungry. I’m gonna starve. And I’ll tell Miss Imaya it was your fault. She’ll kick you out,” She told him, innocently, doing puppy eyes at him.

“I don’t doubt it,” he deadpanned. He sighed, giving up. “I think there’s some bread in the kitchen. Are you fine with toast? There’s probably butter or jam as well.” 

“Oh, I want quince jam. And don’t burn the bread, the black parts are gross,” she commanded him.

“What am I, your slave?” 

“Yeah,” she smiled. The little shit.

“You’re the worst,” he told her, as he got up and went into the kitchen. 

“Can I have some, too?” Damien shouted from the dining table.

“Screw you.” 

“Make some for me, too,” Fortov said. 

Jerks, all of them. 

“I’m not you guys’ slave!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had lots of fun writing this, so I hope you've had fun reading it as well. I might try to fit a few more scenes into this, but for now this doesn't seem like a bad place to end it.
> 
> Hope you guys liked it!


End file.
